Ma Soleil
Chapter Twenty-Four: Speech
Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are the property of Marvel. This is a work of fan fiction, not an attempt to infringe on Stan Lee's personal arsenal of hotties. I can wish all I like, but Sabes is never gonna show up to collect me, and that's that. Oh, yeah, I'm making zero, zip, nada profit off this and if you want Beck, just ask.
REVIEW, PLEAAAAASE! PRETTY PLEASSSE! If you liked it, tell friends! I'll write more if you review! My e-mail address is seraph_taurus@thekeyz.com. Thanks for your time and God bless.
# - indicates thought
^ - indicates telepathic conversation
~ - indicates that a language other than English is being conversed in.
XXX
Jono wiped beads of sweat from his forehead as he walked into the Danger Room Observation Booth. ^So 'ow'd I do, Nate?^ he grinned at X-Man, who pulled up two highlighted points from the session.
"You did very well, but there are a couple instances where you didn't protect your right side."
^Yeh, yer right. That bloody Phalanx bastard wouldn't 'ave 'ad a chance if my mind 'ad been on th' game.^
"You didn't seem to be concentrating very well on the exercise." Nate Grey reflected, tugging on his wispy goatee. "You seem emotionally preoccupied."
^Jus' a bit.^
"Do you want to talk about it?"
^Sure,^ the Englishman grabbed the cold compress his team leader offered and applied it to his face and neck. ^I feel. . .jussa tad confused,^ he confided.
"Come on, Jon, we've known each other for upwards of twenty years. You've gotta give me a little more to work with than that." Nate rolled his eyes. "Wait, lemme guess. It's either about Rebecca or Jubilee."
^Mostly Jubilee, if you'd believe it.^ Jono blew a curl of psionic flame out of his mouth. ^I think it's marvelous, wot Beck's doin' fer th' Prof an' all, an' we've been talking a lot more. . .well, we've been talking period, an' that's a definite improvement. I mean, we're sibs, but it don't automatically follow that we'd get along so well. Yer know?^
"Yeah, I know what you mean." X-Man rolled his eyes as he referred to his nearly non-existent relationship with his elder brother, Cable.
^I mean. . .a while ago, Jubilee an' I 'ad this conversation.^ Jono hesitated. ^I mean, it was late, an' I wasn't thinkin' too clearly, but basically I told 'er I wanted ter be t'gether again.^
"What?!" Nate leant forward, eyes wide.
^Yer know I love 'er. Hell, I guess everyone does. It's not much'v a secret.^
"Yeah, but I thought you and that girl. . .what'shername again?"
^Wot you talkin' about, I 'aven't 'ad a date in a month!^
"Havily. . .that's her name. Weren't you getting serious about her?"
^Riddle me this, scab-of-th'-earth, jus' 'ow'm I supposed ter get serious over someone when I ain't over Jubilee yet?^ Jono demanded, rolling his eyes. ^Thing is, I'm mad about 'er.^
"So what did you talk about that night?"
^I told 'er I wanted ter be wif 'er, an' she said she'd think about it.^
"Ouch." Nate winced. Jono's eyes narrowed.
^No kiddin', yer smart-mouthed pillock.^
"What're you going to do about it? You KNOW she's never going to give you an answer."
^That's not really wot bothers me, though.^
"Well, if THAT'S not what bothers you, you're a strange, sick man."
Ignoring him, Starsmore continued, ^Wot bothers me is that she's gonna bottle up woteva feelings she's got. It's not so much not bein' wif 'er, it's not knowin' whether I 'ad a second shot'r not.^
"Why the hell did you break it off, again?"
^SHE did, not me.^
"Yeah. So why did SHE?"
^Scared o' th' commitment, I guess. She figures she's still bloody fifteen years old, an' can pick an' choose before she gets old.^
"You're BOTH getting old."
^We all are, yer stupid bastard.^ Jono rolled his eyes, and stood up. ^S'pose that pretty much sums it up.^
"So you've told her all of this? How you feel?"
^I ain't about ter put th' squeeze on 'er, Nate,^ he retorted ^She'll probably make a break f'r it, an' I don't wanna lose 'er.^ Jono put his face in his hands, and took a deep breath. When he looked up, he noticed Nathan staring at him. ^Wot now?^
"You just. . .you just. . .BREATHED!"
"I. . .I wot?" Jonothon's mouth hung open, and he took another tentative pull of air. "I breathed." He whispered, his words no longer staggered. "I can talk without stutterin'." He let out a bark of laughter, and grabbed Nathan up in a swirling bear hug. "I can TALK!" he screamed, and whooped loudly. "I've got ter go figure out wot I'm gonna say ter Jubilee."
"I thought you just said you didn't know what to do?"
"It's a sign, Nate! A sign that I'm s'posed ter be wif 'er."
"I don't. . ."
"Of course yer don't understand. Oh, God, I can talk, I can BREATHE!" Jono let out a short bark of laughter and rushed out of the room. Nate Grey propped his face up on a hand and rolled his eyes.
"I hope he doesn't screw things up TOO badly."
XXX
"This is bollocks, you know," Rebecca muttered under her breath as she shoved Warden into the elevator. "You completely smashed."
"Ssho yoo tol' me when we left Viddo's. Veegdo's. Veeeggg..."
"Stop it." She hissed, and jabbed a near-concussive blast of TK into the elevator buttons. As the machine brought them up to the dorm level, Chris began to hum gently. "Shut up."
"Shuddub." He retorted, his features creasing into a half-crazed expression, his blue eyes widening. She glared, and he burst out laughing. "Taegg...tayyy...tayge....tayyyyyke." he nodded several times, and closed his eyes for a moment. 'Tayyke me to shheee Jaaa...Jean-Baul."
"Jean-Paul? You sure he'll be all right with me dumping you on him while you're this incapacitated?" she quirked a brow.
"Eeee will beee fiiine." Chris slurred, "I 'ave dooo...goo...tooooo abologiiiize."
"Apologize? What for?"
"Fucking 'im silleeee." Warden giggled. "Annnd then nnnnot calllllling." He hiccupped, and giggled again.
"You're not going anywhere NEAR Beaubier," Rebecca muttered as the elevator doors swung open. "I'm taking you to my room."
"I KNEW it!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "Yoo...yoo wannnd...wannnt mee all to yourshelf!"
"Yeah, that's right." She hauled him down the corridor. "Now shut it before I have to shut you down." She shoved him into her room, and he fell onto her bed.
"Yoo wouldn't!" he drew himself up, but then faltered a little, and turned green. "Oh, shit." He rushed into her bathroom, threw the toilet bowl open, and emptied his two hundred dollar dinner into it. She headed after him, grabbing a washcloth from the linen closet. She saturated it with cold water in the sink and pressed it to the back of his neck.
"Damn it, Warden." She dabbed gently. "I hate it when you're sick."
"Me too," he sniffled, tearing a piece of tissue paper off the roll and wiping his mouth. "I'm gonna havva hangover toooomorrowww, right?"
"Bingo. Unless you take one of my orange pills."
"Gimmee orange pill Beckee." He slurred. "Didda good job driving 'ome didn' I?" he grinned when she returned with the bottle of over-the-counter hangover prevention pills.
"You didn't drive home. I did. With two chocolate martinis in me. Aren't you proud of me, my darling, drunk, techno-savvy partner?"
"Verrrry. Verrry proud, my Beckee." He wiped his nose across his sleeve and laughed soggily. "I wanna fuck Jean-Paul tonight. Verry horny. Love'im. Richard...love'im. Gotta get backkat 'im. Bastard broke m'heart."
Rebecca winced. During dinner, all Chris' thoughts had been centred on the food and their company, and she thought he had forgotten about his erstwhile partner. "Damn it, Chris. You've gotta either go after him, or let him go. He's a fucking bastard."
"I'm lettin' go. Jus' wanna mourn a bit." He shrugged. "Lemme cry onyer shoulder?" his big, blue eyes, glazed as they were with the alcohol he'd consumed, latched onto hers despairingly, and she stifled a sob.
"Of course, Chris. Of course." He scooted away from the toilet, and curled up in her arms, laying his golden head on her shoulder like a little boy, and she wrapped her arms tightly around him, rocking him to and fro, like a mother would.
XXX
Chapter Twenty-Four: Speech
Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are the property of Marvel. This is a work of fan fiction, not an attempt to infringe on Stan Lee's personal arsenal of hotties. I can wish all I like, but Sabes is never gonna show up to collect me, and that's that. Oh, yeah, I'm making zero, zip, nada profit off this and if you want Beck, just ask.
REVIEW, PLEAAAAASE! PRETTY PLEASSSE! If you liked it, tell friends! I'll write more if you review! My e-mail address is seraph_taurus@thekeyz.com. Thanks for your time and God bless.
# - indicates thought
^ - indicates telepathic conversation
~ - indicates that a language other than English is being conversed in.
XXX
Jono wiped beads of sweat from his forehead as he walked into the Danger Room Observation Booth. ^So 'ow'd I do, Nate?^ he grinned at X-Man, who pulled up two highlighted points from the session.
"You did very well, but there are a couple instances where you didn't protect your right side."
^Yeh, yer right. That bloody Phalanx bastard wouldn't 'ave 'ad a chance if my mind 'ad been on th' game.^
"You didn't seem to be concentrating very well on the exercise." Nate Grey reflected, tugging on his wispy goatee. "You seem emotionally preoccupied."
^Jus' a bit.^
"Do you want to talk about it?"
^Sure,^ the Englishman grabbed the cold compress his team leader offered and applied it to his face and neck. ^I feel. . .jussa tad confused,^ he confided.
"Come on, Jon, we've known each other for upwards of twenty years. You've gotta give me a little more to work with than that." Nate rolled his eyes. "Wait, lemme guess. It's either about Rebecca or Jubilee."
^Mostly Jubilee, if you'd believe it.^ Jono blew a curl of psionic flame out of his mouth. ^I think it's marvelous, wot Beck's doin' fer th' Prof an' all, an' we've been talking a lot more. . .well, we've been talking period, an' that's a definite improvement. I mean, we're sibs, but it don't automatically follow that we'd get along so well. Yer know?^
"Yeah, I know what you mean." X-Man rolled his eyes as he referred to his nearly non-existent relationship with his elder brother, Cable.
^I mean. . .a while ago, Jubilee an' I 'ad this conversation.^ Jono hesitated. ^I mean, it was late, an' I wasn't thinkin' too clearly, but basically I told 'er I wanted ter be t'gether again.^
"What?!" Nate leant forward, eyes wide.
^Yer know I love 'er. Hell, I guess everyone does. It's not much'v a secret.^
"Yeah, but I thought you and that girl. . .what'shername again?"
^Wot you talkin' about, I 'aven't 'ad a date in a month!^
"Havily. . .that's her name. Weren't you getting serious about her?"
^Riddle me this, scab-of-th'-earth, jus' 'ow'm I supposed ter get serious over someone when I ain't over Jubilee yet?^ Jono demanded, rolling his eyes. ^Thing is, I'm mad about 'er.^
"So what did you talk about that night?"
^I told 'er I wanted ter be wif 'er, an' she said she'd think about it.^
"Ouch." Nate winced. Jono's eyes narrowed.
^No kiddin', yer smart-mouthed pillock.^
"What're you going to do about it? You KNOW she's never going to give you an answer."
^That's not really wot bothers me, though.^
"Well, if THAT'S not what bothers you, you're a strange, sick man."
Ignoring him, Starsmore continued, ^Wot bothers me is that she's gonna bottle up woteva feelings she's got. It's not so much not bein' wif 'er, it's not knowin' whether I 'ad a second shot'r not.^
"Why the hell did you break it off, again?"
^SHE did, not me.^
"Yeah. So why did SHE?"
^Scared o' th' commitment, I guess. She figures she's still bloody fifteen years old, an' can pick an' choose before she gets old.^
"You're BOTH getting old."
^We all are, yer stupid bastard.^ Jono rolled his eyes, and stood up. ^S'pose that pretty much sums it up.^
"So you've told her all of this? How you feel?"
^I ain't about ter put th' squeeze on 'er, Nate,^ he retorted ^She'll probably make a break f'r it, an' I don't wanna lose 'er.^ Jono put his face in his hands, and took a deep breath. When he looked up, he noticed Nathan staring at him. ^Wot now?^
"You just. . .you just. . .BREATHED!"
"I. . .I wot?" Jonothon's mouth hung open, and he took another tentative pull of air. "I breathed." He whispered, his words no longer staggered. "I can talk without stutterin'." He let out a bark of laughter, and grabbed Nathan up in a swirling bear hug. "I can TALK!" he screamed, and whooped loudly. "I've got ter go figure out wot I'm gonna say ter Jubilee."
"I thought you just said you didn't know what to do?"
"It's a sign, Nate! A sign that I'm s'posed ter be wif 'er."
"I don't. . ."
"Of course yer don't understand. Oh, God, I can talk, I can BREATHE!" Jono let out a short bark of laughter and rushed out of the room. Nate Grey propped his face up on a hand and rolled his eyes.
"I hope he doesn't screw things up TOO badly."
XXX
"This is bollocks, you know," Rebecca muttered under her breath as she shoved Warden into the elevator. "You completely smashed."
"Ssho yoo tol' me when we left Viddo's. Veegdo's. Veeeggg..."
"Stop it." She hissed, and jabbed a near-concussive blast of TK into the elevator buttons. As the machine brought them up to the dorm level, Chris began to hum gently. "Shut up."
"Shuddub." He retorted, his features creasing into a half-crazed expression, his blue eyes widening. She glared, and he burst out laughing. "Taegg...tayyy...tayge....tayyyyyke." he nodded several times, and closed his eyes for a moment. 'Tayyke me to shheee Jaaa...Jean-Baul."
"Jean-Paul? You sure he'll be all right with me dumping you on him while you're this incapacitated?" she quirked a brow.
"Eeee will beee fiiine." Chris slurred, "I 'ave dooo...goo...tooooo abologiiiize."
"Apologize? What for?"
"Fucking 'im silleeee." Warden giggled. "Annnd then nnnnot calllllling." He hiccupped, and giggled again.
"You're not going anywhere NEAR Beaubier," Rebecca muttered as the elevator doors swung open. "I'm taking you to my room."
"I KNEW it!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "Yoo...yoo wannnd...wannnt mee all to yourshelf!"
"Yeah, that's right." She hauled him down the corridor. "Now shut it before I have to shut you down." She shoved him into her room, and he fell onto her bed.
"Yoo wouldn't!" he drew himself up, but then faltered a little, and turned green. "Oh, shit." He rushed into her bathroom, threw the toilet bowl open, and emptied his two hundred dollar dinner into it. She headed after him, grabbing a washcloth from the linen closet. She saturated it with cold water in the sink and pressed it to the back of his neck.
"Damn it, Warden." She dabbed gently. "I hate it when you're sick."
"Me too," he sniffled, tearing a piece of tissue paper off the roll and wiping his mouth. "I'm gonna havva hangover toooomorrowww, right?"
"Bingo. Unless you take one of my orange pills."
"Gimmee orange pill Beckee." He slurred. "Didda good job driving 'ome didn' I?" he grinned when she returned with the bottle of over-the-counter hangover prevention pills.
"You didn't drive home. I did. With two chocolate martinis in me. Aren't you proud of me, my darling, drunk, techno-savvy partner?"
"Verrrry. Verrry proud, my Beckee." He wiped his nose across his sleeve and laughed soggily. "I wanna fuck Jean-Paul tonight. Verry horny. Love'im. Richard...love'im. Gotta get backkat 'im. Bastard broke m'heart."
Rebecca winced. During dinner, all Chris' thoughts had been centred on the food and their company, and she thought he had forgotten about his erstwhile partner. "Damn it, Chris. You've gotta either go after him, or let him go. He's a fucking bastard."
"I'm lettin' go. Jus' wanna mourn a bit." He shrugged. "Lemme cry onyer shoulder?" his big, blue eyes, glazed as they were with the alcohol he'd consumed, latched onto hers despairingly, and she stifled a sob.
"Of course, Chris. Of course." He scooted away from the toilet, and curled up in her arms, laying his golden head on her shoulder like a little boy, and she wrapped her arms tightly around him, rocking him to and fro, like a mother would.
XXX